Renewed Terror
by pigwidegeon
Summary: Dark marks are appearing across the country and muggles are being targeted. With both the wizarding world and the muggle world set to tear itself apart it is up to the next generation to stop dark forces even more powerful than Voldemort.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Kingsley Shacklebot flicked through the stacks of paper on his desk. Although he had been minister for magic for three terms following the defeat of the Dark Lord, as well as being head of the Order of the Phoenix, he never found himself more at home than he did in his office, filing through reams of parchment, sorting out the dark wizards from the simple law breakers and the occasional 'wrong place wrong time victim.' Tonight was no exception, even 20 years on there was still talk in the darkest corners of the seediest bars about Voldemort's return, but all of it hear say, rumours to keep those who need a dictator, not a democracy leading them. In any culture you got these people, almost sadists, desperate not to rule but to be ruled. He added a piece of parchment to the 'misuse of muggle artefacts' pile. Somehow he didn't see people who make sofas eat people as dark wizards, merely pranksters. He rubbed his eyes and looked at his watch, almost time for the shift change. If everything went smoothly he would be able to go home, perhaps get some sleep, although sleep had been uneasy recently, ever since that article was published. A few days early the Daily Prophet had published an article about how, conspiracy groups were claiming that dark wizards were able to penetrate the mind, even during sleep, and through this were able to manipulate your dreams, make you think things had happened, even though they hadn't. Of course, just like Voldemorts return it was all gossip, to keep those ears that wanted to hear it happy, whilst the Prophet would be able to make a fortune by publishing a seven part guide on how to fight the 'dream manipulators.' Panic sold papers, Kingsley remembered his aide telling him this at the end of his third term, when after much demand (due to rumour mongering) in various forms of wizarding media, the public decided that Kingsley was in fact a spy for the dark lord during his reign of terror. All based on rumours, rumours fed into the media by his opposition, but enough to merit an inquiry none the less. Panic sells papers, that's what the media need sheer, uncontrollable panic.

Kingsley rose from his chair and walked to the office window. From his office he could see the whole Auror department, at one end of the office taking up a whole wall was a list of each Auror, enchanted to tell where they were at all times, half the list said work, the other half said 'travelling to work.' Suddenly the list started flipping, those that were at work now said 'travelling home' and those that were 'travelling to work' now were at 'work' filing in through the various doors at the sides of the room, shuffling to their desks, to pick up their assignments. Kingsley kept his eyes fixed firmly on the list. His newest recruit, a 20 year old wizard called Knox, the nephew of the Minister for Magic had been sick for several days and the list had read accordingly, except it didn't read 'sick' anymore, it now read nothing, there was nothing next to Knox's name. According to the list Knox was nowhere. Kingsley ignored this, passing it off as a malfunction; the list was relatively new and had a history of malfunctioning. Just after it had been installed one of the Auror's by the name of Johnson had taken some holiday, after a few days the list read as 'mortal peril.' A team was sent to investigate, only to find Johnson and his family were spending a few days at his mother in laws. Kingsley tapped the window with his wand, slowly the window tinted itself so no one could see in, and he made his way over to his desk. He missed field work but he was far too old for that now. Instead now he sat at a desk making the big decisions; dark wizard or prankster, it was ultimately his word that confined a man to a lifetime of misery, or a hefty fine. He liked the work, yes it was a huge responsibility but wasn't that what being an Auror was about? Protecting the world based on your decisions or those of a superior? Most of those men down there weren't prepared for the world of politics, which is the world they would enter if they made a wrong choice, so it was up to Kingsley, he had many years experience, he could take the blame for them, keep their careers alive.

The lights flickered ever so slightly, it was only for a moment but a moment was enough. Kingsley didn't have time to turn; he registered, through his peripheral vision a flash of green light, then everything went black. Had the window not been tinted the Auror's in the office below would've seen the flash. However Kingsley was a private man, his home life was private, his work life was even more so. If the office window was tinted it meant either Kingsley Shacklebot was working or he wasn't in, being a superior his name didn't appear on the list, so no one would know.


	2. All that Glitters

For an office normally bustling with noise, the Auror office was deathly quiet out of respect. Four ministry officials edged their way down the stairs from the upper office carrying between them a stretcher, upon which lay the covered body of the now deceased Kingsley Shacklebot. Everyone in the office stopped what they were doing, rose from their seated or slouched and silently acknowledged the passing of their mentor. Everyone in the office had, at one point or another worked one on one with Kingsley Shacklebot and therefore everyone had great respect for him. Members of other departments came down to repay their respects too, but there was talk too, rumours spreading like wildfire, not just through the surrounding offices but all over the ministry. The guard wizards at the front desk were heard saying Kingsley had taken his own life, due to being deemed to old by the minister to work in the field. A wiry young wizard from the Auror office had been passing as the two wizards discussed this and took great pride in turning not one of them but both of them into top hats. This wiry young wizard was Knox; it had been him who had discovered Kingsley's body slumped ceremoniously over the desk, the life drawn out of him.

None of the other Auror's liked Knox that much, apart from the fact he was a weak, wiry specimen, he wasn't cut from the same cloth as the other Auror's, he was destined for a career in politics, thank to his childless uncle, Lionel Heart, the current minister for magic. Knox had got the job through his uncle, didn't have to pass any of the tests, do any of the training. His uncle made sure he was glued to Shacklebot's right side to keep him safe, if Shacklebot needed research, Knox was the man for the job. Knox had worked in the office for precisely three months and 13 days when Shacklebot died and in those 3 months and 13 days Knox had made no arrests, duelled no dark wizards, and contributed nothing to any of the arrests made by the office. Instead, when asked he would tell the other Auror's

"I'm working on something private for Mr Shacklebot." That was all they got out of him. True he was never not working, he was always cross referencing one story with another, trawling the archives for similar patterns of events, it couldn't be said he wasn't a hard worker, but he wasn't an Auror, he would do better in Dark Wizard Research, even the misuse of muggle artefacts didn't want him, although that was Arthur Weasley's department and that was very much a family affair now, since he had employed his youngest son 17 years earlier. But again, the Weasley's got the job done.

Internal affairs were carrying out the investigation into Shacklebot's death, although this would've normally been the work of the Auror office, given the death was the head of the Auror office, combined with the rumours of a possible inside job, the Auror department could not be fully trusted in this case. Each member was questioned in Shacklebot's now empty office, until finally there was man left to question. Knox boldly walked into the office. One of the internal affairs wizards said

"Eugene Knox?" Knox nodded, he had learnt one thing from and that was to say only what you had to.

"It was me, I killed Shacklebot," Knox said, his voice didn't waiver even slightly, the two internal affairs wizards turned to each other then back to Knox. They had both worked together in the department for many years and seen and heard many strange things, but never heard a 20 year old newbie confess to killing his boss.

"That's what you need to convict me isn't it? A confession? Well there it is, I've taken the liberty of writing it down as well," he slid a piece of paper across the table to the two wizards "and if you check my wand you will find the second to last spell it preformed was the killing curse, I planned for it to be the last spell but unfortunately I had to transfigure two guards into top hats for giving Shacklebot credit for my crime."

One of the internal affairs wizards picked up the confession and read through it, Knox had handed his wand over at the beginning of the interview as well. He picked up Knox's wand, tapped the end of it with his, the first spell to come out was a basic transfiguration spell, revealing two men being turned in to top hats. The second spell was a flash of green light and a ghostly apparition of Kingsley Shacklebot slumping in his chair, his life drained.

"Well that's more than enough to convict," the wizard said turning to his counterpart who nodded, they both turned to face Knox

"Eugene Knox you are hereby charged with the murder of Kingsley Shacklebot, until a date is set for your trial you are too be held in the high security wing of Azkaban prison. You are required to surrender your wand and any potions or charmed objects you may have on your person." The wizard flicked his wand; thick coils of rope flew out the end, grabbing Knox by the wrists, securing them tightly together in front of him. Knox didn't struggle, didn't try to counter the wizards restraints, instead he just sat there and smiled.

"Shacklebot's death was only the first of many, you have no idea of the magnitude of what you are dealing with, and as we speak dark forces are rising up again, ready to reclaim what is his. Hundreds will die and you can only sit back and watch." One of the internal affairs wizards flicked his wand again, a gag flew out, wrapped its self round Knox's mouth.

As Knox was escorted to a holding cell, the rumours were already circulating throughout the ministry. Extendable ears were wonderful things when an interrogation was going on in a non secure room, and like a rumour at a school the news quickly began spreading, although some version were more exaggerated than others, exchanges could be heard throughout the corridors.

"I heard he killed three of the seven internal affairs wizards trying to take him in."

"That's nothing I heard he transfigured himself in to air born bacteria and the man they took in is a fake..."

Back in the misuse of muggle artefacts office Arthur Weasley was briefing his son on what had happened.

"you understand they are all rumours, we may never know the truth, my guess is he has a week before a trial, and the dementors kiss will happen as soon as he gets back to Azkaban after the trial, either way we will never know why." Arthur said to his son, whilst pouring coffee out of the end of his wand. Ron fiddled with a muggle radio he had removed a spitting charm from early in the day, suddenly it crackled into life

"listeners, we are interested in your opinions on the strange cloud formations up and down the country, one listener from Leeds emailed in saying she remembers seeing them as a little girl 23 years ago over the woods near their family home. Another listener has emailed pictures of the cloud formations and it looks to me like a skull with a snake protruding from the mouth, of course, psychologists are saying this is merely an elaborate con and the clouds are being created as a nationwide 'inkblot' test. Let me know your views, now to Glenn Scott for the traffic." The radio fizzled out of life again. Ron pulled his hand away from the radio, as if it were about to bite him, Arthur Weasley turned ghostly white,

"Ron, go home, grab Hermione and the kids, and take them to our house, I'll send Fred an owl, get him to meet us there too."

"But what about Ginny and Harry?" Ron argued

"Ron, it's Harry, if he's seen the mark, if it is even the dark mark, then he'll be headed to the burrow as well, he's not stupid. What I don't understand is how it happened? Or why? Now go!"

Ron turned and left the office, his thoughts racing through his mind. This couldn't be happening could it? He saw Voldemort's dead body; they had destroyed all the horcruxes. Surely if there was a way to come back from the dead someone would've ensured Voldemort couldn't, wouldn't they. By the time Ron cleared his head enough to focus on what he was doing he was in the main atrium, the only area in the ministry where you could apperate in and out. Ron cleared his mind and focused on home, suddenly he was gone.

Nothing could've prepared Ron for what he saw when he apperated into his garden, it was already getting dark but there it was shining above his house, glittering in the dark night sky was the cloud formation the radio had been talking about. Ron drew his wand; the dark mark was put above the houses of people the death eaters had killed. His house seemed secure, the house had many types of magical protection on it, meaning you couldn't apperate in to the house itself, slowly, his hand shaking he placed it on the door handle and gentle turned the handle, the door swung silently open and he stepped inside. The house was dark, almost as he left it this morning. His breakfast plates were still in the sink but there were four or five bags of shopping on the side, Hermione wouldn't have left them there by choice, she would've had them put away within minutes of getting through the door.

"Lumos," Ron muttered, a small glowing light ignited the end of his wand, if there was anyone in the house, they would see him coming but they had nowhere to go, you can't apperate or disaperate inside... they would have to fight past him, and if they had hurt any of his family, they wouldn't be getting up, Ron stepped out of the kitchen and into the dining room, pinned to the mirror, just above the fire place was a note, neatly scribbled on parchment 'We are safe, you know where we are.' That was all, it was defiantly Hermione's writing, she had defiantly seen the mark, she knew what to do. After the last battle, as the Auror's were rounding up the death eaters Kingsley had put a plan in place, a plan that could save lives. If there was any signs of danger then the family would converge on the burrow, it had received so much protection when Harry came of age that it seemed only right to keep it as a safe house, and Molly loved having people to stay. Ron turned to leave the house and saw, glistening on the opposite wall, daubed in what appeared to be blood another message, as he raised his wand he noticed that each letter glittered in its own individual way.

'All that glitters is not Gold...' Ron made a mental note of this; perhaps someone would be able to tell them what it all meant. Ron left the house, crumpled the note into his pocket, and stepped into the garden, the temperature had dropped drastically and now, the dark mark burnt gold against the black sky, Ron's breathe hung in the air for a few seconds after he disappeared.

Slowly and silently a man stepped out of the bushes, waved his wand and the dark mark disappeared, leaving only the black sky. Now they were running scared, but where were they running too? If Potter, Weasley and Granger could defeat the Dark Lord with the help of their friends then they would simply have to be separated, divide and conquer. That was the way, first divide them, get them in three separate places, then strike simultaneously. The man shrunk back into the shadows of the bushes, there was a slight breeze and then the garden stood still.


End file.
